Saturday, February 2, 2013

Disney Cast Members Teach Bird Watching To Local Girl Scouts

Members of four Central Florida Girl Scout troops recently joined Cast Members at the 3rd annual Walt Disney World Holiday Bird Count, organized by Disney’s Animal Programs.

The day-long event is designed for “birders” of all skill levels. Disney Cast Members with an affinity for bird watching taught the Girl Scouts which birds are found in Central Florida in the winter and how to recognize bird calls in the wild.

Together Cast Members and Girl Scouts counted 107 different bird species and over 16,000 individual birds, including 20 Bald Eagles, at Walt Disney World Resort. This year, Holiday Bird Count participants even spotted some species new to the resort, like the Virginia Rail.

Information gathered during the counting is shared with conservation organizations, enabling them to follow trends in bird populations and help focus conservation efforts.

One new event at the Walt Disney World Holiday Bird County was the Family Birding Festival, where the Girl Scouts and Cast Members’ kids participated in a variety of fun activities that included a nature walk.